DAY 27 | THE SHINING

centering thought

“Our attitudes and actions, our care for the poor and dying, our insistence that God is real and can be known and loved, wafts hope throughout a dark and depraved world. This is what we were made for, every one …”

encouragement from God’s word 

Read: MATTHEW 5:14-16

devotional direction

There is nothing quite like encountering light, when all around you has been dark. A night light when you’re a guest in an unfamiliar residence can save your toes from being stubbed. A flashlight when you’re making your way across a campground at nightfall can keep curious critters at bay. A headlamp during a hike that took longer than you expected can keep your footing sure. And the city lights off in the distance can elicit a sigh of deep relief from there on the deserted stretch of road.

One of the most gratifying aspects of the Christ-following life is that we not only enjoy that sense of relief, but we become it for those in our midst. “The Word gave life to everything that was created,” John 1 says, “and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it” (vv. 4-5). As those who are literally embodied with the Light of the world by God’s Spirit living within us, we have both the calling and the capability to cast beams of love and hope and grace onto a depraved and hopeless world. When the world around us stubs their collective toe, as they fumble through the dark, we can brighten the path they are walking. We can turn on a needed light.

question to ponder

What brightness will you provide for the world around you today?